"What are you talking about?"Elena asked in disbelief. Shaking her head at Gail's serious nod, she let out a laugh. "We are talking about one of the most well known womaniser and playboy in LA. He hasn't changed in the four months. It's all over the news. So I don't think he'll be changing now."

"How do you know about the women? You've never cared about him and you didn't know that Harry is Harry until today." Gail's suspicious eyes made her squirm. But she had a perfectly good reason.

"The girls love to talk about him. Even if I don't want to listen, it seems that I've absorbed all that information. So why are you still here anyway?" She was hoping to change the topic as she didn't want to blurt out that her ears had always perked up whenever anyone talked about Harry. As she had always prided herself on her levelheadedness, it felt like a guilty pleasure. The strangest thing was the fact that she had never seen him before. She just couldn't explain her fascination with him.

"I told you. Harry's out buying dinner. He doesn't want you to be alone." Gail dropped to the couch and rested her head on Elena's shoulder. Elena let her even though she was tempted to shove her aside.

"And you listened to him? The woman who can argue about air and win? And weren't you leaving? You were going to walk out with Oliver and Jeremy. I remember you bringing your purse along."

"Harry looked so concerned that I found myself agreeing before I even knew what was happening. His sharp jawline and intense eyes were no help either. Seriously,"Gail said as she sat up and turned to her, "how do you stand his eyes? They're so forceful and commanding. I have a hard time not calling him Mr Reynolds as it is."

"His... eyes?" She was taken aback by the sudden question. "They're hot."

"But don't you feel intimidated? That's the one thing the media always report. They love his eyes. So do a lot of women. Even me. But I realise it's more of liking the idea. You know what I'm talking about?"

"Um, no?" Elena was confused. Gail was babbling. She never babbles. She's the most put together woman she had ever known. "What are you talking about?"

"You know. It feels like I'm being sucked into his eyes. Like I'm falling under his spell." Elena was surprised at the strength of her anger and the possessiveness that filled her. She had never been territorial about a guy. Hoping her shock wasn't showing, she made herself look blankly at Gail. She cocked her head to the side. "You've never experienced this? How do you feel when you are with him? Tell me your first impression."

"Well, I have always been able to be myself with him. I don't feel the need to conform to Society's standards of women. Maybe it's because I heard him first before I set eyes on him. He was arguing on the phone and whatever he was talking about, I can relate to. Then when I saw him, he was so shocked that he didn't have the opportunity to intimidate me. What?"she asked awkwardly when Gail let out an "Aww".

"That's so sweet,"Gail said with a wide smile.

"Okay. Thanks?" Leaning back when Gail came up to her face, she held up her hand. "Distance, sister. What's wrong with you?"

"You've never talked about him before. Whenever I asked about him, you've always been close to crying and you know how I feel about crying,"she said, returning to her seat. Elena let out a silent breath of relief as she could return to her normal posture. She'd forgotten how intense Gail could be. Reminded of her friend's discomfort with crying, she laughed softly.

"I think you'll have to think about this discomfort. Since you're going to be my babies' Godmother, there's going to be a lot of crying."

"That's when I'll dump them into your arms. Yours and Harry's." Elena was about to laughingly protest when she saw Gail narrowing her eyes. Which means something was going to bite her in the butt. And she held back a groan when she folded her arms. "Which reminds me. While I commend you for successfully changing the subject,"Gail said with narrowed eyes, making Elena curse under her breath as she knew what she was talking about, "I'd also like to thank you for jogging my memory."

"Please drop it,"she moaned, covering her face with her hands. "I don't know where you heard it but I'm sure you're wrong."

"Ellie, he explicitly told me, in those same words, to pack your stuff. You are moving with him. Accept it."

"I don't want to. I've told you about my family. Do you think I'd be happy relying on someone again?"she beseeched. She saw Gail soften.

"I guess not. But he's a stubborn motherfucker. You know, being a CEO and all. You'll have to talk to him about it-"

"Talk to me about what?"

The both of them turned to the entrance at that sudden voice. Elena couldn't help the thrill of happiness and completeness that filled her with his presence. She didn't even realised she had gotten to her feet until Gail snickered,"Thirsty."

Even though she didn't know what that meant, she knew it was not complimentary. Hitting her shoulder, she then made her way to Harry. He was taking out all that he had bought and smiled at her when she joined him at her dining table. She smiled when she saw the north indian dishes. Her favourite. From her favourite restaurant too. Her heart melted when she realised he must have been waiting for close to an hour. The restaurant always had a long line. Her eyes began tingling. Hoping to avert the worse, she looked down at the table and began to notice the scratches. Then her mismatched chairs. Feeling self-conscious, she gripped the top rail of the closest chair.

"So what did you buy?"Gail asked, joining them. Elena refused to look at her since she knew her friend was going to tease her relentlessly.

"I know that this is not what you should be eating but Gail told me that it's your favourite-"

"Why shouldn't I be eating this?" Elena was confused. Her confusion grew when Harry looked at her, startled.

"I looked up what should be best for you and the kids. Curry wasn't in any of the recommended lists. So this will be the last time-"

"Woah, wait up,"Elena said, her anger flaring. Harry stopped and looked at her. His cool and collected expression made her even angrier. Folding her arms, she leveled a glare at him. "What the hell are you talking about? I need food. I will eat food. I don't care if it's recommended or not. If I want it, I'll eat. So don't come into my life and control what I can and cannot eat."

"Be sensible, Els. You're supposed to be focusing on their development. Surely all these take outs and spicy food is not healthy for them. I'm sure my housekeeper can whip up whatever you want but healthier-"

"What are you talking about? Why would you housekeeper cook for me? Is she going to come here and take care of the housework? And are you saying that I don't care about my babies? That I'm feeding them junk food? I gave up wine and beer the moment I knew that I was pregnant. Do you know how difficult it was?" Elena couldn't believe what she was hearing. And she couldn't believe how mad she was. She was so close to throwing things at him. Looking at his puzzled and angry eyes, she decided she was definitely throwing something at him.

"That's ridiculous. When did I say that? I just meant that I want the best for them and the recommended food will be in their interest. And why would she coming here if you're moving in with me?"

"Move in with you? Why would I move in with you? I like my apartment as it is-"

"Yeah, you must really love it. The mess that I saw when I came sure showed how much you love it." She didn't appreciate his sarcasm.

"Well, it's definitely better than your pompous ass."

"What did you say?"Harry hissed, his eyes becoming noticeably cold. This must be what Gail was talking about, Elena absently noted. It was just as well that she was subjected to it now or she would never have talked to him. But, surprisingly, she was not scared or cowed. Grabbing her food, she continued glaring at him.

"You heard me. Pompous, Over-bearing. Condescending. Conceited. Oh, here's a good one and the best description of you. Pontificating idiot. Pick one. It's not that hard since they all mean one word. Jackass. For the record, just because you have money and you helped make them doesn't give you any right to dictate me. Dictate my food. Dictate where I live. I'm sure this is something that's difficult for that small brain of your but I do know what I'm doing. I've been living and breathing it for the past four months. I've read all the lists that you are only looking up now. So don't come in here and put your nose in things you have no idea about. Anyway, thanks for today. Don't let the door hit you on the way out."

-----@@@@-------

"What the hell? She can't just do this,"Harry raged. Elena had gone to her room the moment she had, basically, told him to leave. He hadn't noticed she had taken her dinner as well until he looked down at the table. Clenching and unclenching his hands, he was about to go after her.

"I don't think that's a good idea."

He stopped. His eyes shot to Gail, who was enjoying her dinner at the table. He noticed that she was halfway through her meal and looked highly entertained. Realising he had the best person to explain to him what just happened, he took a seat and waited for her to swallow. Impatiently.

"You know. That's the most I've heard her swear. Kudos to you for getting that out of her."

"I don't care about that. I want to know what set her off." The flames of his anger flared bigger when she sent him a look of disbelief and he slammed his hand on the table. It gratified him when her look changed to wariness. "Tell. Me."

"She explained it. You're being too full of yourself. Telling her to do this and that. She hates that. And she's stubborn. Don't let her quiet fool you. She can be like the most ornery, stubborn mule. If she doesn't want to do it, she won't."

"You're not helpful." He was scrambling to rectify this situation and Gail's unhelpfulness was further frustrating him. "Leave."

"Excuse me." Hearing Elena's voice and hoping she was willing to listen to reason, he turned to her. His hopes were dashed when he was greeted with her glare. "Did you just tell my best friend to leave? Well, you can take that shit attitude and leave. Get out!"

"Elena, Els, come on. Listen to me-"

"No. You are unwelcome here." Realising she was not going to listen, he hardened his expression.

"I'm not going anywhere."

"Then I'm going to cry."

Shocked at the panic that threatened to overwhelm him, Harry forced a stoic face. He even allowed his lips to lift in a smirk.

"Why would that make me leave- No. What? Don't- Stop."

Seeing the tears rolling down her cheeks, he immediately went to her side. Feeling helpless, he tried to dry her cheeks but she turned away and batted away his hands.

"Leave,"she said, her watery eyes meeting his. Knowing she had won this battle, he gritted his teeth and left. But not before leaving his name card with his personal mobile with her.

Then, as he got into his car, he called the only person who could help him.

"Hello?"

Ignoring the groggy voice, he asked,"I want to speak to April."  

AN: Hey guys, hope you like this chapter. What did you think about Elena showing her independence?

Anyways, please don't forget to VOTE and COMMENT if you like it. Also follow me on Wattpad and Twitter, @wpsaiidah, for updates on my life(?) but more importantly writing process. Sometimes, I'd try to get feedback on there as well.

THANKS

P.S: for your info, some of the other chapters are now free to read on Radish. So if you want to read them, check this link out: https://radish.app.link/gwEPfCQSnD